Dutch theologian, namesake for the Mennonites
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Hoe benutten Nederlandse ondernemers met belangen in Amerika de adempauze die Donald Trump ze heeft gegeven door de handelstarieven te pauzeren? Te gast bij Martijn de Greve en Elif Isitman zijn: * Leendert-Jan Visser, algemeen directeur van MKB-Nederland * Bert Colijn, hoofdeconoom van ING Nederland * En koffiemaker- en handelaar Menno Simons. Haagse Lobby is een programma van Omroep WNL. Meer van WNL vind je op onze website en sociale media: ► Website: https://www.wnl.tv ► Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/omroepwnl ► Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/omroepwnl ► Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/wnlvandaag ► Steun WNL, word lid: https://www.steunwnl.tv ► Gratis Nieuwsbrief: https://www.wnl.tv/nieuwsbrief
Martin Luther is a hero to countless Christians around the world. The birth of European Protestantism and the Lutheran Church cannot be expressed without citing the 95 theses that Martin Luther posted to the church door on Halloween 1517. A diet of worms follows.Whether you want to celebrate Fred the Wise or Pope Leo X, big changes came to Western Christendom because of Martin Luther's refusal to back down from a fight he believed in. He also believed that God wants people to suffer, so we'll take the whole thing in parts, favoring some things and not others.... We examine the Five Solae: Fidae, Scriptura, Gratia, Christus, and Deo Gloria; and how Protestantism differs from the Imperial tradition from which it was born. We also take a look at contemporary protestors, like Ulrich Zwingli, John Calvin, Menno Simons, the anabaptists of Zurich, and the dramatic climax of Guy Fawkes' treasonous Gun Powder Plot.All this and more....Support us on Patreon or you can get our merch at Spreadshop. Join the Community on Discord. Learn more great religion factoids on Facebook and Instagram.
Do you have a choice? Has God already decided if you're coming up or going down? In the book of Romans this idea is explored in chapter 9, and it is a very debated and misunderstood piece of Scripture. The church has been split between two opposing views, so where does Anabaptism stand in this minefield of opinion?Text us now. Let us know if you have questions about what this show is about.Support the showThanks for listening!Join the conversation onOur website, https://teleiostalkpodcast.buzzsprout.comTwitter, @TeleiosTFacebook, https://www.facebook.com/share/GF5fdop8prDoKfx5/Or, email us at teleiostalk@gmail.comOur Podcast is on YouTube and Rumble too!Check out our book "Six Good Questions"Please consider supporting our ministry.Donate using PayPal
In today's episode we're finding out how specialty roasters and distributors are navigating the ever-changing landscape of e-commerce coffee. In an era where the competition is now global, how do brands stand out from the crowd? How can businesses engage with consumers and build loyal audiences online? And what lies ahead for the burgeoning new coffee discovery segment?We'll speak with Menno Simons, Founder, Bocca Coffee, Suneal Pabari, Co-founder, The Roasters Pack and Alice Wainwright, Co-founder, Rise Coffee Box.Get 15% off your first three boxes at Rise Coffee Box with the discount code WAVE15Credits music: "Soulmate" by Catherine Taylor Dawson in association with The Coffee Music Project and SEB CollectiveSign up for our newsletter to receive the latest coffee news at worldcoffeeportal.comSubscribe to 5THWAVE on Instagram @5thWaveCoffee and tell us what topics you'd like to hear
Strength to Strength welcomed Finny Kuruvilla to reexamine the record of the church as recorded in Acts.Is the book of Acts an historical account which is not intended to be repeated? Or is it supposed to be the template for the Christian life? This talk will explore this age-old question and make a biblically grounded proposal.An interactive question-and-answer period follows.https://strengthtostrength.org/sacred-roots-the-book-of-acts-descriptive-or-prescriptive/Books recommended by Finny particularly for those with Anabaptist heritage, in order of priority:Book: “Conrad Grebel: The Founder of the Swiss Brethren” by Harold S. Bender https://www.amazon.com/Conrad-Grebel-Harold-S-Bender/dp/1532666683/Book: “The Legacy of Michael Sattler” by C. Arnold Snyderhttps://www.amazon.com/Michael-Sattler-Classics-Radical-Reformation/dp/0874862566/Book: “The Anabaptist Story” by William Estephttps://www.amazon.com/Anabaptist-Story-William-R-Estep/dp/0802808867/Book: “The Sources of Swiss Anabaptism: The Grebel Letters and Related Documents” (primary source)https://www.amazon.com/Sources-Anabaptism-Classics-Radical-Reformation/dp/0874862620/Book: “Writing of Pilgram Marpack” (primary source)https://www.amazon.com/Writings-Pilgram-Marpeck-Classics-Reformation/dp/0874862582/Book: “Complete Works of Menno Simons” (primary source)https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Works-Menno-Simon/dp/1015480578/Other recommendation by Finny in the context of continuationism:Study: “Is There a Pattern to the Bible's Miracles?” by Joel Arnold https://joelarnold.com/is-there-a-pattern-to-the-bibles-miracles/Book: “A Story of God's Faithfulness” by George Chavanikamannil https://www.amazon.com/Barren-Mango-Orchard-Faithfulness-Architect/dp/B0CTN4DNHC
De prijs van de arabicaboon, de meestgebruikte bonensoort ter wereld, staat op 't hoogste niveau sinds 1977. Dit jaar alleen al steeg de prijs voor deze boon met 70 procent. Wat betekent dat voor koffie liefhebbend Nederland? En merkt de koffieboer hier nog wat van, of blijft het geld elders in de keten hangen? Menno Simons, oprichter en algemeen directeur van koffiegroothandel Trabocca en koffiemerk Bocca, is te gast in BNR Zakendoen. Macro met Mujagić Elke dag een intrigerende gedachtewisseling over de stand van de macro-economie. Op maandag en vrijdag gaat presentator Thomas van Zijl in gesprek met econoom Arnoud Boot, de rest van de week praat Van Zijl met econoom Edin Mujagić. Beleggerspanel Nederlandse verzekeraars onderzoeken de mogelijkheden om in defensiebedrijven te investeren. Wat weerhoudt ze en van wie is de euro die in de houwitzerkegel wordt gestopt? En: China onderzoekt of Nvidia de mededingingsregels heeft overtreden. In hoeverre wordt het bedrijf een geopolitieke speelbal? Dat en meer bespreken we om 11.10 in het beleggerspanel met: Mary Pieterse-Bloem, Head of Investment Office (CIO) bij Rabobank en bijzonder hoogleraar financiële markten aan de Erasmus School of Economics Arend Jan Kamp, analist bij Stockwatch, maker van de podcast Het Beurscafé Contact & Abonneren BNR Zakendoen zendt elke werkdag live uit van 11:00 tot 13:30 uur. Je kunt de redactie bereiken via e-mail. Abonneren op de podcast van BNR Zakendoen kan via bnr.nl/zakendoen, of via Apple Podcast en Spotify. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
De prijs van de arabicaboon, de meestgebruikte bonensoort ter wereld, staat op 't hoogste niveau sinds 1977. Dit jaar alleen al steeg de prijs voor deze boon met 70 procent. Wat betekent dat voor koffie liefhebbend Nederland? En merkt de koffieboer hier nog wat van, of blijft het geld elders in de keten hangen? In ‘De top van Nederland’ een uitgebreid gesprek met Menno Simons, oprichter en algemeen directeur van koffiegroothandel Trabocca en koffiemerk Bocca.Presentator Thomas van Zijl vraagt hem of... - de hoge prijzen van koffiebonen later terug zijn te zien voor de consument; - de gestegen prijzen uiteindelijk bij de boeren terecht komen of elders in de keten; - de keurmerken en certificaten wel het gewenste effect hebben op de koffiemarkt; - de Europese ontbossingswet de koffieteelt gaat verduurzamen; - klimaatverandering de koffie oogsten de komende decennia verder zal verslechteren. Over Bocca en Trabocca Bocca is een ‘specialty coffee’ merk, opgericht in 2001. Het hoofdkantoor staat in Dronten en het heeft één koffiezaak in Amsterdam. Bocca heeft als koffiemerk de hele koffieketen in eigen beheer. Trabocca, opgericht in 2003, is een groothandel in koffiebonen en levert aan zowel Bocca als andere merken wereldwijd. Over Thomas van Zijl Thomas van Zijl is financieel journalist en presentator bij BNR. Hij presenteert dagelijks ‘BNR Zakendoen’, het Nederlandse radioprogramma voor economisch nieuws en zakelijk inzicht, waar 'De top van Nederland’ onderdeel van is. Ook is hij een van de makers van de podcast ‘Onder curatoren’. Abonneer je op de podcast Ga naar ‘De top van Nederland’ en abonneer je op de podcast, ook te beluisteren via Apple Podcast en Spotify. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Is your vote a tool for change or simply participation in a corrupt system? Do you feel a tension between engaging with a broken world and protecting your faith from its influence? This episode of Found (the second in the "Faith in Politics" series) grapples with these very questions as hosts Linda Tokar and Brandon Bathauer explore the idea of "separation as faithfulness." Discover why a growing number of Christians are choosing to disengage from the political sphere, citing reasons like distrust in candidates, a sense of powerlessness, and concern about the world's corrupting influence. Through insightful analysis of recent studies and statistics, the hosts unpack the motivations behind this perspective and what it means to live faithfully in a world that often feels at odds with Christian values.Journey through the history of Christianity and discover how groups like the Essenes, monastic movements, and Anabaptists embraced separation as a means of preserving their faith. Explore the writings of influential thinkers like Menno Simons, John Howard Yoder, Rod Dreher, and C. Kavin Rowe, and see how their ideas have shaped the modern understanding of this approach. The hosts examine key biblical passages that both support and challenge the idea of separation, sparking a thought-provoking discussion about the role of Christians in the public square. Is withdrawing from the world the best way to protect one's faith and live according to Christ's teachings, or is there a path to engage meaningfully without being corrupted?Suggested Resources for further study:Menno Simons: A good starting point is The Complete Writings of Menno Simons translated by Leonard Verduin.John Howard Yoder: His most famous work is The Politics of Jesus, which explores pacifism and Christian engagement in the world.Rod Dreher: His book The Benedict Option: A Strategy for Christians in a Post-Christian Nation advocates for building resilient Christian communities in response to a perceived decline in Western culture.C. Kavin Rowe: The World Upside Down: Reading Acts in the Graeco-Roman Age examines the early Church's response to Roman power and provides a framework for understanding Christian witness in a challenging world.For updates on important events, visit https://saddleback.com/found and join the Found community! For any questions, email us at formation@saddleback.com .
A new MP3 sermon from The Sterling Pulpit is now available on SermonAudio with the following details: Title: Voices of the Reformation - Menno Simons Subtitle: Voices of the Reformation Speaker: Brian S. Wright Broadcaster: The Sterling Pulpit Event: Sunday Service Date: 7/28/2024 Length: 34 min.
This is message 17 in The Seven Churches of Revelation. Revelation 3:1-6 During the Middle Ages, known as the Dark Ages due to the dominance of the Roman Catholic Church and a lack of widespread Christian enlightenment, the Renaissance sparked renewed interest in scripture following the influx of Greek literature and preserved Bible texts into Europe. This period saw the rise of the Protestant Reformation, initiated by Martin Luther's 95 Theses in 1517, which challenged the Catholic Church's teachings and emphasized scripture as the sole authority. Influential figures like John Calvin expanded on these ideas, while the Anabaptists advocated for a complete separation of church and state, emphasizing adult baptism and the priesthood of all believers. Despite severe persecution, these movements laid the groundwork for religious diversity and freedom, exemplified by leaders like Menno Simons, John Bunyan, and Roger Williams, who promoted religious freedom and influenced various Christian denominations and movements. Don't forget to download our app for more from the Riverview Baptist Church. http://onelink.to/rbcapp Find more at https://riverviewbc.com/ Donate through Pushpay https://pushpay.com/pay/riverviewbc
Andrew Penner grew up in the Mennonite tradition of the Anabaptist movement. The Anabaptists have a colorful history of subversion from the Catholic Church, despite their commitment to pacifism. There's an awful lot to learn on these subjects, including the connection with the Amish and Hutterite branches, as well as the variation within the Mennonite conferences. (Jakob Amman and Jakob Hutter were a little more extreme than Menno Simons.)Early Anabaptist beliefs are outlined in the 1527 Schleitheim Confession of Faith, so we discuss these points with Andrew, and get the lowdown on their importance in Menoism, in contrast with the greater network of Anabaptism. Andrew relates these subjects to his own experiences and his family history, and he shares with us how this is affected by his being a Freemason, too.You can WATCH this interview on YouTubeThis interview continues on Patreon Find Holy Watermelon merch at SpreadshopJoin the Community on DiscordGet more great religion facts in your feed on Facebook and Instagram
Over the past year, Carol has been digging into the faith practices of her spiritual ancestors — the Anabaptists. Her research led her to conclude that the early Anabaptists of the sixteenth century, many of whom were former Catholic priests, nuns, and clerics brought more with them from their Catholic background to their "new" convictions than we realize. One practice evidenced in the extant writings of early leaders like Menno Simons, Felix Manz, and Balthasar Hubmaier is called lectio divina.
Welcome back to another episode of Meet The Chefs! This is my first episode from the Dutch capital, Amsterdam, and it's one for coffee lovers! Menno set up both Trabocca and Bocca, coffee importers and a cafe that have been at the forefront of fairtrade and value-driven coffee since their founding in 2004. It's fascinating to hear about just how much goes into each and every espresso and just how Menno is still learning things about the world of coffee. Be sure to check out the full article on the business and other Amsterdam spots when they go live on my website www.olieatsitall.wordpress.com and be sure to subscribe and check out the Instagram https://www.instagram.com/olieatsitall/ for more! --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/oliver-hall/message
(00:00) Luca Giurato e Fabrizio Paolino augurano una buona Festa Delle Donne raccontando la trama del film(03:59) Numeri mennoniti, coincidenze bresciane e i retroscena di Menno Simons(07:20) L'angolo meno polemico del solito
De tweede grote periode in mijn theologische ontwikkeling is de periode in de Doopsgezinde Broederschap van 1996 - 2005.Menno Simons en de Amerikaanse Menisten waren voor mij een grote inspiratie, ondanks het feit dat ik hier weinig begrip vond voor mijn waardering voor de joodse traditie. Maar de praktijk van de Nederlandse Menisten was toch duidelijk geheel anders dan die van de geestelijke voorouders. Dat leidde tot de tweede grote breuk in mijn theologische ontwikkeling.
Part 25 Reformation 2 - Ulrich Zwingli, John Calvin and Persecution Today we continue with the Protestant Reformation by looking briefly at two other giants of that time – the Swiss reformer, Ulrich Zwingli and the French Reformer, John Calvin. Ulrich Zwingli (1484-1531) Zwingli was a Swiss reformer independent of Luther who was greatly influenced strongly by the teachings of Erasmus. He was born during a period of time when Swiss national patriotism was emerging. After studying humanities before taking on the role of pastor in a church in Glarus and later in Einsiedeln. It was in 1518 that Zwingli became pastor of Grossmunster in Zurich. Here he preached about reforming the Roman Catholic church. He was particularly critical of fasting during Lent, church hierarchy, clerical celibacy and the use of image in worship. In 1525, he produced a new liturgy to replace the Roman Catholic liturgy. These ideas soon came to the attention of Martin Luther and other reformers. When they met, they did agree on many things but differed on several y matters. Zwingli taught that the Lord's Supper was purely symbolic and the elements of bread and wine did not change literally into the flesh and blood of Jesus Christ and nor did they at any point contain the real presence of Jesus Christ. His reforms went from Switzerland to France, Scotland, Hungary, Holland, Germany, England, Puritans). Zwingli was killed in 1531 during an attack by his enemies within the Roman Catholic church on a food blockade supported by him. Zwingli's theology held the supremacy of the Bible, being the inspired word of God, over the teachings of humans such as the Church Councils and Church Fathers. Concerning baptism, Zwingli differed from the Anabaptists who promote adult baptism only. Zwingli taught that the baptism of children was valid, describing that it was symbolic of God's covenant with the Christian, much the same as it was when God made His covenant with Abraham. He also promoted a non-Roman Catholic view of Church Government and Worship. Zwingli thought that the government was instituted by God and that they governed with divine approval. He taught that Christians were obliged to be obedient to their governments but to be disobedient only when the government acted in a manner to God's will. John Calvin Our next giant is John Calvin! He was French and greatly influenced by Martin Luther. Trained as a lawyer, he broke away from the Roman Catholic church in 1530. During persecution by the Roman Catholic church on the reformation movement, Protestants, Calvin fled to Switzerland. There, in 1536, Calvin published the first edition of his now famous “Institutes of the Christian Religion.” Calvin went onto introduce new forms of church government and worship liturgy despite opposition from secular authorities and people of power. In his final years, Calvin continued unabatedly to promote the Reformation of the church throughout Europe. During this time he also kept busy writing commentaries and regularly preached in churches. Prime to his thinking was Augustinian teaching, leading him to propose the doctrine of predestination and the absolute sovereignty of God in salvation and damnation. Protestant persecution. While the Reformation was only in its infancy, there was intense persecution of the Reformation Protestants by the Roman Catholic Church, particularly in Spain, France and the Netherlands. Thousands of Protestants died in battle and through persecution. It was during this time that the printing press was invented and was the catalyst for the rapid promotion and distribution of these new ideas of Luther, Zwingli, Calvin and others. During this time also, we have noted that there was intense theological debate between the Reforming Protestants over such things as worship, predestination, the Lord's Supper and style of Church government. During this period, the Roman Catholic Church evangelised and rapidly gained new ground and more than made up for the losses to Protestantism. The Roman Catholic church did respond with a Counter Reformation. Commencing with the Council of Trent and the beginning of the Jesuits, these were designed to counter the Reformation movement. The majority of Northern Europe became Protestant, while Central Europe sank into deep conflict. In the mid-1500's many Protestant Christians rejected both the Roman Catholic Church, and Lutheranism for not having gone far enough. They stressed personal discipleship; a daily walk with God; a principle of love and pacifism; the Church as a family not an organisation; adult baptism; congregational Church government; and the separation of Church and State, The spread through Europe and were intensely persecuted by both the Roman Catholic Church and other Protestants resulting in many deaths. One of their leaders was Menno Simons (1496-1561), whose group the Mennonites, are still functioning today. That's it for this time! Next time in our series HAHA, we will look at the Reformation gathering pace - this time in England! Tap i=or click here to download and save this as an audio mp3 file
In Santa Cruz, Bolivien entsteht die neuste Zweigstelle vom Missionswerk Mitternachtsruf. Matthias und Doro Rindlisbacher bauen dort die Arbeit unter den Mennoniten auf. Matthias erklärt uns hier einen der Schwerpunkte dieser Arbeit.HAT IHNEN DER PODCAST GEFALLEN?
Eerste in een serie overwegingen bij het naderende afscheid van de VPKB in Knokke, aanstaande zondag 17 juli. Hoe zijn we hier gekomen? Deel 1, het theologische verleden. Van Vergadering naar Doopsgezinde Broederschap, toen naar de PKN in Ter Apel en IJmuiden, toen naar Knokke. Maar ook van J.N. Darby naar Menno Simons, Karl Barth en later John MacArthur. Maar nu ook (opnieuw) Israël en de Joodse tradities. Heb ik mij ooit ergens kerkelijk thuis kunnen voelen? Mijn kerkelijk thuis ligt nu tussen de Bethel in Schagen en de Heemkerk in Heemstede.
We wrap up another Narrative Lectionary year with the lovely close of Paul's letter to the community at Philippi. These words of encouragement, consolation, and assurance are bedside words: one can just as easily imagine reading them to a beloved child at bedtime, or a beloved elder at the time of death. They are a benediction of sorts, functioning as a semicolon - a pronounced pause - between the two main clauses of waking and sleeping, or living and dying, or worship and work. Listen to Pastor Megan's comma of a sermon, extolling the semicolons of our shared life.Sermon begins at minute 3:27.Philippians 4:4-7Image: semicolonBibleWorm podcast: Episode 345 – Pentecost, Amy Robertson and Robert Williamson, Jr.Semicolon | sem·i·co·lon | noun | a punctuation mark (;) indicating a pause, typically between two main clauses, that is more pronounced than that indicated by a comma. [definition from Oxford Languages]Voices Together [link to purchase through Menno Media] 797 Text: based on Menno Simons, Reply to False Accusations, 1552; stanzas 1, 3, 4 vers. David Augsburger, 1978; adapt. Esther Bergen, 1990; stanza 2 by Mennonite Worship and Song Committee, 2017 © Mennonite World ConferencePermission to podcast the music in this service obtained from One License with license #A-726929. All rights reserved.
Imagine a Christian leader afraid of reading the Bible. In the early 16th century this was relatively common. Superstition and fear led many believers to mistrust the Scriptures, for fear they would beguile them into heresy. In this episode of Season 3, learn how Menno Simons, a Catholic priest, began to trust the Word of God in an age when it was well-nigh considered taboo. Check out the awesome artwork that goes along with today's story on our website, thegreatpodcast.org!
This episode is about how necessary and comforting the incarnation and two natures of Jesus Christ are for us Christians. Once again, theology matters and is inseparable from our comfort and joy. PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST IN WHATEVER APP YOU LISTEN. Subscribe and be altered when new episodes are available. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR FAMILY WORSHIP: (1) What advantages are there to being confessional? (2) Are there disadvantages to being confessional? (3) What about Christianity is lost when saying Jesus Christ had a "celestial flesh" and not true human flesh and blood from Mary? (3) Why does the gospel crumble if Jesus had an earthly father named Larry? (4) Can someone truly trust in Christ and love God if they reject essential truths of the Christian faith? (5) How do HC QAs 14-18 connected to QAs 35-36? Blog: smalltowntheologian.org. Books: The Heidelberg Catechism: True Comfort for Life & Death & Predestined for Joy: Finding Comfort in a Controversial Doctrine Associations: Society of Reformed Podcasters & Christian Podcast Community.
This episode is about how necessary and comforting the incarnation and two natures of Jesus Christ are for us Christians. Once again, theology matters and is inseparable from our comfort and joy. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR FAMILY WORSHIP: (1) What advantages are there to being confessional? (2) Are there disadvantages to being confessional? (3) What...
A lot to unpack today! Who are the Amish? Why do they dress and live like it's still the 17th century? How are they related to Mennonites? What interpretation of Christianity led to them to the lifestyle they live today? Are they happy? Are they a cult? Today we'll explore the Anabaptist, Protestant Reformation origins of the Amish and how they differ from Mennonites. We'll look at their practices of Rumspringa and shunning. We'll examine why the refuse to drive cars or use computers. We'll also dig into some examples of their communities not handling sexual abuse in an even remotely appropriate way. Are they really just a harmless, simple, live-off-the-land group of Christians? Or is there something sinister about many of their core beliefs? All this and more in today's episode of Timesuck! The Bad Magic Charity of the month is SEO: Sponsors for Educational Opportunity. SEO's mission is to create a more equitable society by closing the opportunity gap for young people from historically excluded communities. To find out more, go to seo-use.orgWe're donating $13,680 to this great charity, which is 90% of the Patreon donation for this month.The other 10% - $1520 is going to the Cummins Family Foundation's Scholarship Fund. (Will Probably Change Its Name) By the end of the year, hoping 10% of all of 2022's charitable contributions adds up to several great Bad Magician scholarships for 2023.Watch the Suck on YouTube: https://youtu.be/nNJvYtrl40IMerch - https://badmagicmerch.com/ Discord! https://discord.gg/tqzH89vWant to join the Cult of the Curious private Facebook Group? Go directly to Facebook and search for "Cult of the Curious" in order to locate whatever happens to be our most current page :)For all merch related questions/problems: store@badmagicproductions.com (copy and paste)Please rate and subscribe on iTunes and elsewhere and follow the suck on social media!! @timesuckpodcast on IG and http://www.facebook.com/timesuckpodcastWanna become a Space Lizard? Click here: https://www.patreon.com/timesuckpodcastSign up through Patreon and for $5 a month you get to listen to the Secret Suck, which will drop Thursdays at Noon, PST. You'll also get 20% off of all regular Timesuck merch PLUS access to exclusive Space Lizard merch. You get to vote on two Monday topics each month via the app. And you get the download link for my new comedy album, Feel the Heat. Check the Patreon posts to find out how to download the new album and take advantage of other benefits.
220208PCReligionsfrieden – geht doch! Mensch Mahler am 08.02.2022 Der Schweizer Filmemacher Max Widmer ist weltweit unterwegs, um Beispiele gelingenden Religionsfriedens aufzuspüren. Er hat sich bei seiner Spurensuche an der Mennonitische Kirche orientiert. Warum? Die Mennoniten, benannt nach dem holländischen Täufer Menno Simons, hat die friedenskirchliche, pazifistische Tradition von der Reformation des 15. Jahrhunderts bewahrt. Gibt es heute noch Beispiele gelebten friedenskirchlichen Engagements? Max Widmer, selbst Mennonit, wurde in Indonesien fündig. Ausgerechnet! Mehr als 87% der Bevölkerung sind Muslime. Tempur ist ein Dorf in den Muria-Bergen. Bis 1984 gab es in Tempur keine Christen. Dann entstand eine kleine mennonitische Gemeinde. Der erste Christ und der Verwalter der Moschee sind Brüder. Eigentlich sollte der Riss durch die Familie gehen. Aber die große muslimische Mehrheit und die christliche Minderheit leben in friedlicher Koexistenz. Bei der Renovierung der Kirche halfen Muslime mit. Kurz darauf halfen Christen bei der Renovierung der Moschee. „Ich sehe Gott in jedem Gesicht“ sagt die junge Mennonitin Hani Yopita, „ich sehe weder eine Muslima noch einen Christen“. Toleranz heißt, die Anderen in ihrer Religion zu tolerieren und sich auf Augenhöhe zu begegnen. Inzwischen ist in Tempur eine gemeinsame Friedensbibliothek entstanden. Dort begegnen sich Muslime und Christinnen beim gemeinsamen Studium der Bücher. 5 Bespiele gelebter Friedenskirche sucht Max Widmer auf allen Kontinenten. In Äthiopien und in Indonesien ist er schon fündig geworden. 3 Kontinente stehen noch aus. Begleiten sie Max Widmer auf seiner abenteuerlichen Reise. Ihr Reiseführer? Affox.ch – a ff ox dot ch. Viel Vergnügen! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
It's been a signifcant week in Canada as the Freedom Convoy continues to make headlines around the world. Mennonites have traditionally shied away from politics and activism, but the last few years, have become much more vocal. But as always, it can be a delicate affair to balance the line between living our Christian convictions and mixing church and state. On today's episode, Maria shares an important event in Mennonite/Anabaptist history - the Munster Rebellion - and the lessons we can learn from its mistakes just as Menno Simons did. May we be wise in the days ahead. Resources used for this epsiode: Munster Rebellion Menno Simons Jan Van Leyden
The tree of spiritual munificence must be refreshed from time to time. Chris gets to learn all about the Amish from someone whose story has been featured on a previous episode. (thanks to Lizzie Hershberger, co-author of Behind Blue Curtains, for her time & insights!) --- *Search Categories* Anthropological; Destructive --- *Topic Spoiler* Amish (current day) & interview with Lizzie Hershberger --- *Further Reading* https://groups.etown.edu/amishstudies/experts/topics/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anabaptism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amish https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jakob_Ammann https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_Brethren https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mennonites https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Menno_Simons https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plain_people https://www.britannica.com/topic/Anabaptists https://ideaexchange.uakron.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1030&context=amishstudies https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-a-Baptist-and-an-Anabaptist https://www.discoverlancaster.com/amish/history-beliefs/ https://amishamerica.com/where-do-the-amish-live/ https://www.amishfurniturefactory.com/amishblog/are-there-amish-settlements-outside-the-united-states/ https://scholarlyoa.com/why-dont-amish-use-technology/ https://www.amishvalleyproducts.com/why-do-amish-reject-modern-technology --- *Patreon Credits* Michaela Evans, Heather Aunspach, Annika Ramen, Zero Serres, Alyssa Ottum Jenny Lamb, Matthew Walden, Rebecca Kirsch, Pam Westergard, Ryan Quinn, Paul Sweeney, Erin Bratu, Liz T, Lianne Cole, Samantha Bayliff, Katie Larimer, Fio H, Jessica Senk, Proper Gander, Kelly Smith Upton, Nancy Carlson, Carly Westergard-Dobson, banana
"If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water." -Loren Eiseley Chris revisits a previous topic but widens the scope by deep diving into the (sometimes violent) religious shards of context. --- *Search Categories* New Religious Movement; Anthropological --- *Topic Spoiler* Amish (Anabaptist origins) --- *Further Reading* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anabaptism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amish https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jakob_Ammann https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_Brethren https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mennonites https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Menno_Simons https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plain_people https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_views_on_poverty_and_wealth https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baptism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_the_Baptist https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_initiation_rites https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ritual_purification https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Commission https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restorationism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C3%BCnster_rebellion https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Matthys https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_of_Leiden https://www.britannica.com/topic/Anabaptists https://www.pewforum.org/2015/05/12/appendix-b-classification-of-protestant-denominations/ https://ideaexchange.uakron.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1030&context=amishstudies https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-a-Baptist-and-an-Anabaptist https://oxfordre.com/religion/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199340378.001.0001/acrefore-9780199340378-e-416?mediaType=Article https://cornishbirdblog.com/fenton-bebilbell-cornwalls-well-of-the-little-people/ https://www.dancarlin.com/product/hardcore-history-48-prophets-of-doom/ --- *Patreon Credits* Michaela Evans, Heather Aunspach, Annika Ramen, Zero Serres, Alyssa Ottum Jenny Lamb, Matthew Walden, Rebecca Kirsch, Pam Westergard, Ryan Quinn, Paul Sweeney, Erin Bratu, Liz T, Lianne Cole, Samantha Bayliff, Katie Larimer, Fio H, Jessica Senk, Proper Gander, Kelly Smith Upton, Nancy Carlson, Carly Westergard-Dobson, banana
The boys are doing a deep probe into an American classic, The Amish! There's a lot to be said about these rural, horse n' buggy folk, so we're diving in heard first! In the first part of this multi-episode series, we start looking at the earliest origins of the religious communities that make up the Amish. Our journey takes us to Europe as we look into figures such as Jakob Ammann and Menno Simons. We also give a brief overview of who they are, some personal experiences and a whole lot of opinions.
Muito bem, muito bem, muito bem, começa mais um BTCast, o seu podcast de teologia! Neste episódio, Rodrigo Bibo conversa com o professor Lucas Gesta sobre o teólogo Menno Simons em mais um episódio da nossa série GIGANTES, em nosso especial Mês da Reforma Protestante. Qual era o contexto do entorno de Menno? O que […] O conteúdo de Menno Simons – BTCast 420 é uma produção do Bibotalk - Teologia é nosso esporte!.
Muito bem, muito bem, muito bem, começa mais um BTCast, o seu podcast de teologia! Neste episódio, Rodrigo Bibo conversa com o professor Lucas Gesta sobre o teólogo Menno Simons em mais um episódio da nossa série GIGANTES, em nosso especial Mês da Reforma Protestante. Qual era o contexto do entorno de Menno? O que […] O conteúdo de Menno Simons – BTCast 420 é uma produção do Bibotalk - Teologia é nosso esporte!.
Menno Simons fue ordenado sacerdote a la edad de 28 años. Aunque educado por el clero nunca había tocado las Escrituras. Pero siendo sacerdote tuvo una crisis de fe. El pan y el vino que entregaba en cada misa no parecían transubstanciarse en el cuerpo y la sangre de Cristo. Así que examinó en el Nuevo Testamento y descubrió que las enseñanzas no correspondían. Años más tarde un anabaptista fue decapitado. "Me pareció muy extraño escuchar un segundo bautismo", escribió. "Examiné diligentemente las Escrituras pero no encontré nada sobre el bautismo infantil". Después de unos años, 300 anabaptistas violentos, fueron brutalmente asesinados por las autoridades. Esta experiencia lo impactó y empezó a predicar la doctrina anabaptista siendo aun sacerdote, para luego abandonar al catolicismo definitivamente. Sin embargo la mayoría de anabaptistas eran violentos. Menno estaba preocupado por esto, pero encontró un grupo de anabaptistas pacifistas y se unió a ellos. Durante el resto de su vida vivió en constante peligro al ser considerado como un hereje. Viajó por los Países Bajos y Alemania, escribió extensamente y estableció una imprenta para propagar las enseñanzas anabaptistas. El emperador Carlos V ofreció 100 florines de oro por su arresto, pero nunca fue capturado. Menno llevó a los anabaptistas de sus fantasías radicales y violentas a ser un movimiento moderado, devoto y pacifista. Menno fue tan importante para los anabaptistas que hoy se autodenominan Menonitas. SÍGUENOS Sitio web: http://biteproject.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/biteproject Podcast: https://anchor.fm/biteproject Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/biteproject/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/biteproject/ CRÉDITOS Conductor: Giovanny Gómez Pérez. Guión: Giovanny Gómez Pérez. Edición del audio: Alejandra Narváez. Música: Envato Elements.
Kat Hill joins us to tell us all about this little-known Christian group named after Menno Simons.
What does it mean to be a Mennonite? What were some of the early beliefs that changed the lives of our Mennonite forefathers so deeply that they were willing to be burnt at the stake? In our third and final series of Mennonite Theology 101, Melanie and Maria talk about the differing views of baptism, and how Menno Simons came to the belief of 'believer's baptism', and ask the question: has baptism lost its meaning in our modern Mennonite churches? We'd love to hear how this series has impacted you! You can email us here or find us on Instagram or Facebook. Resources for this episode: "A Brief Defense of Infant Baptism" by Kevin DeYoung Menno Simons
The year was 1561. We remember Menno Simons. The reading for today, recommended by a listener, a poem by E.H. Hamilton. — FULL TRANSCRIPTS available: https://www.1517.org/podcasts/the-christian-history-almanac GIVE BACK: Support the work of 1517 today CONTACT: CHA@1517.org SUBSCRIBE: Apple Podcasts Spotify Stitcher Overcast Google Play FOLLOW US: Facebook Twitter Audio production by Christopher Gillespie (gillespie.media).
This week, the MennoBrarians discuss the historical fiction book The Mennonite Queen. This novel follows princess Isabella of Poland and her lover Johan, a stable boy and secret Anabaptist, as they flee Poland and head to Munster. Munster in 1534 is perhaps not the best place to be, and soon they escape and run into Menno Simons. Note 1: Clearly, we believe there are about 5 different ways to pronounce "Munster." Apologies for the inconsistent pronunciations. Note 2: Content warning- this episode makes brief, non-graphic references to torture and execution in the context of martyrdom.
In today's lesson on Baptist History, we continue through the 16th century by studying the lives of two men: Michael Sattler and Menno Simons! See the stand they took and what they suffered for their faith. May their lives encourage you to stand for your faith and live for God! Submit a question for our Q&A: https://sandycreekstirrings.com/contact/
Dari pastur yg tak mau belajar Alkitab, menjadi peneliti Alkitab dan pengkotbah Injil Kristus Yesus, dan melakukan perlawanan dengan perdamaian
"We Are People of God's Peace" - our "church founder" Menno Simons declared it so in 1552, and that has been central to the Mennonite identity ever since. But what does that mean, exactly? And what do we do when we don't all agree about that, much less manage to live up to our high ideals? School's back in session; time for a little bit of Peace Church 101!
For episode 7 of the "50 Baptists You Should Know" series, listen to hear about the Menno Simmons, a Catholic priest who became an Anabaptist leader.
Ye ol' sheep & goats. Pastor Megan shares how this passage meant so much to her in a time of shifting theologies and a changing faithview. Also making an appearance: Menno Simons, Mother Teresa, chevre, and #notallgoats. [Photo by Peter Lloyd on Unsplash]
Nous terminons notre présentation de l'anabaptisme avec la restauration du mouvement par Menno Simons. Suite à déviance de Münster, ce prêtre de l'Église catholique se décide enfin à renoncer à la facilité en devenant le principal leader du mouvement anabaptiste. Nous verrons l'histoire et la théologie de ce personnage important de la réforme radicale.
Nous terminons notre présentation de l'anabaptisme avec la restauration du mouvement par Menno Simons. Suite à déviance de Münster, ce prêtre de l'Église catholique se décide enfin à renoncer à la facilité en devenant le principal leader du mouvement anabaptiste. Nous verrons l'histoire et la théologie de ce personnage important de la réforme radicale.
In this episode, Gillespie and Riley discuss Menno Simon's writing on faith, why prepositions matter, and the practical consequences of Gospel-law sermons. Our Text: Faith, Menno Simons Show Notes: Menno Simons biography More Menno Simons Capon Genesis lectures — Questions? Comments? Show Ideas? Send them to us at BannedBooks@1517legacy.com. Please subscribe, rate, and review the show in Apple Podcasts: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/banned-books-podcast/id1370993639?mt=2. We’re proud to be part of 1517 Podcasts, a network of shows dedicated to delivering Christ-centered content through weekly, monthly, and seasonal audio platforms. Our podcasts cover a multitude of content, from Christian doctrine, apologetics, cultural engagement, and powerful preaching. Find out more at 1517. And as always, don't forget Gillespie's coffee for your caffeinated needs and especially the 1517 Reformation Roast
Meeting Menno: An Introduction to the life, thought, and work of Menno SimonsSeries: Learners' Exchange 2017 Speaker: Jeanette JonesLearners' ExchangeDate: 3rd December 2017
In this lecture you’ll learn about the Anabaptist movement and their distinctive beliefs. We’ll consider the life of Michael Sattler, an important leader of the Anabaptists, and see how he stood firm in his faith even when his life was at risk. Next, you’ll find out about Melchior Hoffman and how his followers took over Read more about 119 Sattler, Münster, and Simons (Five Hundred 4)[…]
In this lecture you’ll learn about the Anabaptist movement and their distinctive beliefs. We’ll consider the life of Michael Sattler, an important leader of the Anabaptists, and see how he stood firm in his faith even when his life was at risk. Next, you’ll find out about Melchior Hoffman and how his followers took over Read more about 119 Sattler, Münster, and Simons (Five Hundred 4)[…]
Thanking God for the Reformation Part 4 Luther was not alone! G’day and welcome to our series, Thanking God for the Reformation, where we are looking at and celebrating that momentous event in history, and including in that, Church history. These are extracts from the book “Heroes And Heretics Abound” available on Amazon sites. However, Martin Luther was not alone in reforming the Church. Not by a long way. Let's look together at who these people were, thanking God for them as we hear about just three of these people: Ulrich Zwingli (1484-1531) John Calvin (1509-1564) Menno Simons (1496-1561) Additionally we look briefly at the response to the Protestant movement, including a Counter Reformation. Download the mp3 using the links below to hear more about this fascinating period of Church History, which still resonates today... Click or Tap here to listen to or save this as an audio mp3 file ~ You can now purchase our Partakers books! Please do click or tap here to visit our Amazon site! Click or tap on the appropriate link below to subscribe, share or download our iPhone App!
While searching for the doctrine of transubstantiation in Scripture, he discovered the gospel instead.
Nach dem Zusammenbruch des Täuferreichs zu Münster gerieten viele täuferische Gruppen in eine tiefe Identitätskrise. Ab 1540 wurde Menno Simons, Namensgeber der Mennoniten, zu einer führenden Figur. Unter seiner Leitung setzte sich im norddeutschen und niederländischen Raum die pazifistische Linie durch. Es bildeten sich abgeschiedene, freikirchliche Täufergemeinden. Parallel dazu kam es zu inneren Konflikten in Bezug auf die Reinheit der Gemeinde, was zeitweise zu einer rigorosen Bannpraxis führte. Verbindend blieb aber die radikale Ablehnung von Kriegsgewalt.
Menno Simons (1496-1561) established closed communities. He laid down very strict rules for marriage. Shunning was the Mennonite equivalent of excommunication. When Rutgers' wife would not leave him during a marriage crisis, the Mennonite camp was split. The liberal side of the Mennonites were seen to be compromising with the world. The persecution caused them to flee and Russia became the place to go for most of the persecuted Mennonites. One group of Mennonites lived in a part of Holland known as Waterland. The Waterlanders were the most tolerant and liberal of the Mennonites. They were prepared to enter into commercial and social relations with outsiders. John Smyth and Thomas Helwys were prominent leaders for the Baptists. They became the ancestors of General Baptists, the ancestors of contemporary Baptists today. In 1638 the Particular Baptists formed, holding also to believer's Baptism. The Particular Baptists, strongly Calvinistic in theology, did not evangelize. By the end of the 17th Century, Particular Baptists were more numerous than the General Baptists. Modern Baptists descend from the English Baptists. Roger Williams of Rhode Island believed in freedom of religion. Rhode Island was the only place in the world that did not have a State Church. At that time, separation of Church and State was inconceivable. The result was that Rhode Island was thought to have no moral basis and became a safe haven for criminals. Without consensus, there could not be a social order. Religious tolerance was invented in Western Europe in the 18th Century among Christian groups to tolerate each other.
This episode is titled “Cracks.”One of the great concerns of the Roman Church at the outset of the Reformation was just how far it would go, not so much in terms of variance in Doctrines, although that also was a concern. What Rome worried over was just how many different groups the Faith would split into. After all, division wasn't new. There'd already been a major break between East and West a half century before. In the East, the Church was already fragmented into dozens of groups across Central Asia.But up till the Reformation, the Western Church had managed to keep new and reform movements from splitting off. Most had eventually been subsumed back into the larger reach of the Church structure.The Reformation brought an end to that as now there were groups that defined themselves, not by the Roman Church, but by more local and national churches and movements. It didn't take long till even some of the early Reformers began to worry about how far the break from Rome would go. The cracks that formed in the Church kept spreading, like a nick on a car windshield sends out just a tiny crack at first, but keeps spreading.The Reformation ended up spinning out dozens of groups; some big, many small.There were Lutherans, Presbyterians, Huguenots, Swiss Brethren, dozens of Anabaptist groups, Mennonites, Hutterites, etc. etc. etc..In Episode 90, we touched briefly on the tragedy that struck at Munster when the Anabaptist movement strayed from its moorings in God's Word and replaced it with the lunacy of a couple of its leaders who went way off the rails in an apocalyptic frenzy that ended up destroying the town.Munster became a cautionary tale for other Anabaptists and Reformers. The explanation given for the tragedy was Munster's abandonment of the pacifism preached and practiced by other Anabaptists. Anabaptists regarded the Sermon on the Mount as their guiding ethic and said it could only be followed by a Faith that was committed to the practice of a love that resigned consequences to God's hands.A leading figure among the Anabaptists was Menno Simons, a Dutch Catholic priest.Simons was moved to reconsider the rightness of infant baptism when he witnessed the martyrdom of an Anabaptist in 1531. Five years later, the same year the leaders of Munster were executed, Simons left his position as a parish priest and embraced Anabaptism. He joined a Dutch fellowship, where his followers came to be known as Mennonites.Although persecution was fierce, Menno survived and spent his time traveling through Northern German and Holland, preaching and encouraging his followers. He also wrote a large number of essays of which Foundations of the Christian Doctrine in 1539, became the most important.Menno was convinced pacifism was an essential part of true Christianity, and refused to have anything to do with Anabaptists of a revolutionary flavor. He also held that Christians ought not offer any oaths, and shouldn't take occupations requiring them. But he maintained Christians should obey civil authorities, as long as they weren't required to disobey the Lord.Menno preferred to baptize by pouring water over the head of adults who confessed their faith publicly. He said neither baptism nor communion confer grace, but rather are outward signs of what takes place inwardly between God and the believer. Mennonites also practiced foot-washing as a reminder of their call to humility and a life of service.Even though the Mennonites were so manifestly harmless, they were classed as subversive by many governments simply because they wouldn't take oaths and as pacifists refused to join the military. Persecution scattered them throughout Eastern Europe and Western Russia.Many Mennonites eventually left for the New World where they were offered religious tolerance. In both Russia and North America they ran into trouble when the authorities expected them to serve in the military and they declined yet again. Though the US and several other countries eventually granted Mennonites an exemption from military service, before that exemption came, many Mennonites moved to South America where there were still places they could live in isolation. By the 20th C, Mennonites were the main branch of the old Anabaptist movement of the 16th C, and now they are highly-regarded for their determined pacifist stance and on-going acts of social service for the public good.As the Reformation carved up Europe into a seemingly hopeless hodge-podge of political and religious factions, different attempts were made to resolve the tensions, either by war, by treaty, or alliance.I have to say, the history of 16th C Europe is a tangled mess. If we dive into the details, what you'll hear are a lot of names and dates that's the very kind of history reporting we want to avoid here. A part of me feels like we're leaving out important information. Another part gives an anticipatory yawn at all the historical minutiae we'd have to cover. Things like The Peace of Nuremberg, The League and War of Schmalkalden, Philip of Hesse, Duke George of Saxony, Henry of Brunswick, Emperor Charles V staunchest ally in northern Germany.Hey, I can already hear the yawns out there.But there's some interesting tidbits and moments scattered all through this that move me to say maybe we should dive into it.Like the fact that Philip of Hesse, leader of the League of Schmalkalden, got permission from Martin Luther, his protégé Philip Melanchthon, and Martin Bucer, the Reformer of Strasbourg to commit polygamy! Yes, you heard me right.Philip of Hesse's marriage was a mess. He and his wife had not been together for years, but were still married. Philip wanted companionship and asked these three Reformation giants if he could quietly take another wife. They agreed, saying the Bible didn't forbid polygamy, and that Philip could take a second wife without setting the first aside. But, they said, he needed to do it in secret, because while polygamy wasn't a sin in the eyes of God, it was a crime in the eyes of man. So Philip married another woman, but was unable to keep it secret. When it became public, the scandal toppled Philip from his place at the head of the League of Schmalkalden and put the three Reformers in hot water.And that's just one little vignette from this time. è Fun stuff.While the Lutherans and Catholics wrestled over the territories of Germany, further North in neighboring Scandinavia, Lutheranism was making inroads. In Germany, it was the nobility that embraced Protestantism as a lever to use against the predominantly Catholic monarch. In Scandinavia it was the opposite. There, monarchs took up the Reformation cause. Its triumph was theirs.At that time, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden were technically a united kingdom. I say technically, because the king ruled only where he resided, in Denmark. His power in Norway was limited, and Sweden was virtually independent due to the powerful house of Sture who acted as regents. But even in Denmark, royal authority was limited by the fact the king was appointed by electors who managed to gain ever more power by cutting deals with the next would-be monarch.When the Reformation began in Germany, the Scandinavian throne was held by Christian II, who was married to Isabella, Emperor Charles V's sister. The Swedes refused King Christian's control of their land, so he appealed to his brother-in-law and to other European princes for support. Time for a royal smack-down of those uppity Swedish Stures!With a sizeable foreign force, Christian II moved into Sweden and had himself crowned at Stockholm. Although he'd vowed to spare the lives of his Swedish opponents, a few days after his coronation he ordered what's known now as The Massacre of Stockholm, in which Sweden's leading nobles and clerics were murdered.This engendered deep resentment in Sweden, Norway; even back home in Denmark. Lesser rulers feared that after destroying the Swedish nobility, Christian would turn on them. He claimed he only sought to free the people of Sweden from oppression by its aristocracy. But the treacherous means by which he'd done it and the now intense religious propaganda against him, quickly lost him any support he might have won.King Christian then tried to use the Reformation as a tool to advance his own political ends. The first Lutheran preachers had already made their way into Denmark, and people gave them a ready ear. People were savvy enough to recognize the King's embrace of Lutheranism as merely a political ploy and reacted strongly against him.Rebellion broke out, and Christian was forced to flee. He returned eight years later with the support of several Catholic rulers from other parts of Europe. He landed in Norway and declared himself the champion of Catholicism. But his uncle and successor, Frederick I, defeated and imprisoned him. He remained in prison for the rest of his 27 years.Frederick I was a Protestant and ruled over a people and nobility which had become largely Protestant. At the time of his election, Frederick promised he'd not attack Catholicism nor use his authority to favor Lutheranism. He knew it was better to be the de-facto king of a small kingdom than the wanna-be ruler of a large one. So he gave up all claim to the Swedish crown, and allowed Norway to elect its own king.The Norwegians promptly turned around and elected him. Frederick consolidated the power of the crown in the two kingdoms in a peaceful manner. He kept his promises regarding religious matters and refused to interfere in Church matters. Protestantism made rapid gains. In 1527, it was officially recognized and granted toleration, and by the time of Frederick's death in 1533 most of his subjects were Protestants.Then came a plot to impose a Catholic king by means of foreign intervention. The pretender was defeated, and the new ruler was Christian III, a committed Lutheran who'd been present at the Diet of Worms and greatly admired Luther both for his doctrines and courage. He took quick measures in support of Protestantism and in limiting the power of bishops. He requested teachers from Luther to help him in the work of reformation. Eventually, the entire Danish church subscribed to the Confession of Augsburg.Events in Sweden followed a similar course. When Christian II imposed his authority, among his prisoners was a young Swede by the name of Gustavus Erikson, better known as Vasa. He escaped and, from an overseas refuge, resisted Christian II's power grab. When he learned of the Massacre of Stockholm, in which several of his relatives were executed, he secretly returned. Working as a common laborer, living among the people, he recognized their hostility toward the Danish occupation and organized a resistance. Deeming the time had come to up the ante, he proclaimed a national rebellion, took up arms with a band of followers, and managed to secure one victory after another. In 1521, the rebels named him the new regent of the kingdom, and, two years later, crowned him king. A few months later, he entered Stockholm in triumph.But Vasa's title carried little authority since the nobility and clergy demanded their ancient rights be recognized. Vasa wisely embarked on a subtle policy of dividing his enemies. He began by placing limits on corrupt bishops no one had sympathy for. Then, he began to carve off the support of the common people for nobles who resisted him. This was easy to do since he'd adopted the life of a commoner for some time,. He was a man of the people and they knew it. Vasa drove an effective wedge between the nobility and the people. Then he called a National Assembly and shocked everyone by inviting not just the usual nobles and clergy, but some of the merchant-class and peasantry. When the clergy and nobility banded together to thwart Vasa's reforms, he resigned, declaring Sweden wasn't ready for a true king. Three days later, threatened by chaos, the Assembly agreed to recall him and give assent to his program.The higher clergy lost its political power and from then on, Lutheranism was on the rise. Gustavus Vasa was not himself a man of deep religious conviction. But by the time he died in 1560, Sweden was a thoroughly Protestant realm.One of the lessons this period of history in Europe makes clear is how influential even the nominal faith of a ruler has on the political and religious environment of a nation.
This episode is titled, Taking It Further.History, or I should say, the reporting of it, shows a penchant for identifying one person, a singular standout as the locus of change. This despite the recurring fact there were others who participated in or paralleled that change. Such is the case with Martin Luther and the Swiss Reformer Ulrich Zwingli. While Luther is the “historic bookmark” for the genesis of the Reformation, in some ways, Zwingli was ahead of him.Born in Switzerland in 1484, Ulrich Zwingli was educated in the best universities and ordained a priest. Possessing a keen mind, intense theological inquiry coupled to a keen spiritual struggle brought him to a genuine faith in 1516, a year before Luther tacked his 95 thesis to Wittenberg's door. Two yrs later, Zwingli arrived in Zurich where he spent the rest of his life. By 1523, he was leading the Reformation in Switzerland.Zwingli's preaching convinced Zurich's city council to permit the clergy to marry. They abolished the Mass and banned images and statues in public worship. They dissolved the monasteries and severed ties with Rome. Recognizing the central place the Bible was to have in the Christian life, the Zurich reformers published the NT in their own vernacular in 1524 and the entire Bible 6 yrs later; 4 yrs before Luther's German translation was available.Zwingli didn't just preach a Reformation message, he lived it. He married Anna Reinhart in 1522.In one important respect, Zwingli followed the Bible more specifically than Luther. Martin allowed whatever the Bible did not prohibit. Zwingli rejected whatever the Bible did not prescribe. So the Reformation in Zurich tended to strip away more traditional symbols of the Roman church: the efficacy of lighting candles, the use of statues and pictures as objects of devotion, even church music was ended. Later, in England, these reforms would come to be called “Puritanism.”But more than the application of Reformation principles, Zwingli's bookmark in history is pegged to the Eucharistic controversy his teaching stirred. He was at the center of a major theological debate concerning the Lord's Table. Between 1525 and 8, a bitter war of words was waged between Zwingli and Luther. During this debate, Luther would write a tract and Zwingli would reply. Then Zwingli would pen a treatise and Luther would reply. This went back and forth for 3 yrs. It was a war fought with pamphlets as the ammunition.Both sides rejected the Roman doctrine of transubstantiation—that the prayer of a duly authorized priest transformed the elements into the literal body and blood of Christ. Their disagreement centered on Jesus' words, “This is My body.” Luther and his followers adopted the position known consubstantiation, which says Jesus is present “in, with, and under” the elements and taking Communion spiritually strengthens the believer.Zwingli and his supporters regarded this as an unnecessary compromise with the doctrine of transubstantiation. They said Jesus' words had to be understood symbolically. The elements represented Jesus' blood and body, and Communion was merely a memorial. An important memorial to be sure, but the bread and wine were just symbols.The debate remains to this day.It should be noted that during his last years, Zwingli seems to have moved to a new position in regard to Communion. He came to recognize a spiritual presence of Christ in the elements, though reducing the idea to words is a proposition far beyond the capacity of this podcast to do. This later position of Zwingli was the position of Philip Melanchthon, Luther's assistant and spiritual heir.Following hundreds of years of tradition, Zwingli, along with many other Reformers, believed the State and Church should reinforce one another in the work of God; there should be no separation. That's why the Reformation became increasingly political and split Switzerland into Catholic and Protestant cantons, and eventually saw all of Europe carved up into differing religious regions. The terrible Wars of Religion were the result.Switzerland at that time was a network of 13 counties called cantons. These were loosely federated and basically democratic. Culturally, the north and east were German, while the west was French, and the south was Italian. The Reformation spread from Zurich, chief city of the capital canton, to the rest of German Switzerland, who were nevertheless reluctant to come under the politic al control of Zurich. Several cantons remained militantly Roman Catholic and resisted Zwingli's influence for largely economic reasons.As political tensions grew, several Protestant cantons formed the Christian Civic League. Feeling pressed and threatened, the Catholic cantons also organized and allied themselves with the king of Austria. A desire to avoid war led to the First Peace of Kappel in 1529. But as often happens, once a treaty was hammered out, the only option left was war. Sure enough, two yrs later, five Roman Catholic cantons attacked Zurich, which was unprepared. Zwingli fought as a common soldier in the Battle of Kappel in 1531 and died in the field.The Second Peace of Kappel hammered out at the end of the year prohibited further spread of the Reformation in Switzerland. Heinrich Bullinger, Zwingli's son-in-law, took over leadership of the Protestant cause in Zurich and enjoyed great influence across Europe.An important aspect of Zwingli's impact on the Reformation was that he cast it along civic lines, with a view to establishing a model Christian community. He persuaded the city council to legislate various details of the Reformation. He aimed at political reform as well as spiritual regeneration.The inter-canton struggles of this period led to the growing independence of the city of Geneva, which became the home of John Calvin, the other great Reformation luminary. The Swiss Reformation and Zwinglian movement ended up merging with Calvinism later in the 16th C.Often overlooked in a review of the Reformation are those we might call the REAL reformers – better known as the radical reformers.Not all those who broke with Rome agreed with Zwingli, Luther, or Calvin. As early as 1523 in Zurich, there were those whose vision of Reform outstripped Zwingli's. This movement coalesced around 2 leaders: Conrad Grebel and Felix Manz.On the 21st of Jan, 1525, a little group met in the home of Felix Manz. The Zurich City Council had just ordered Grebel and Manz to stop teaching the Bible. Four days earlier the Council ordered parents to baptize their babies within eight days of birth or face exile. But a group of Zurich's citizens questioned the practice of infant baptism. They met in Manz's home to decide what to do. After a time of prayer, they agreed they'd obey what their conscience told them God's Word said and trust Him to work things out. In an immediate application of that decision, a former priest named George Blaurock asked Conrad Grebel to baptism him in the fashion modeled in the Book of Acts. So, upon confession of His faith in Christ, Grebel baptized him, then Blaurock and Grebel together baptized the others.Anabaptism, another important expression of the Protestant Reformation, was born.As a term, anabaptist means “to baptize again.” The Anabaptists stressed believer's baptism, as opposed to infant baptism. But the term “Anabaptist” refers to diverse groups of Reformers, many of whom embraced radical social, political, economic, and religious views. Some Anabaptist groups are known as the Swiss Brethren, the Mennonites, Hutterites, and the Amish. While those names may conjure up images of buggies, overalls, bonnets and long beards, it's important to recognize that the Anabaptist tradition lies at the heart of a far larger slice of the Christian and Protestant world. Many modern groups and independent local churches could rightly be called Anabaptist in the bulk of their theology, though ignorant of their spiritual heritage.While the theology of the Anabaptist groups ended up being widely spread across the doctrinal spectrum, their main stream adhered to the sound, expository teaching of the Scriptures, the Trinity, justification by faith, and the atonement of Christ. What got them in trouble with some of their Reformation brethren was their rejection of infant baptism, which both Catholic and most other Protestant groups affirmed. They argued for a gathered, voluntary church concept as opposed to a State church. They advocated a separation of church and state and adopted pacifism and nonviolent resistance. They said Christians should live communally and share their material possessions. Counter-intuitively to all this, they preached and practiced a strict form of church discipline. Any one of these would mark them as distinct from other Reformation groups; but taken together, the Anabaptists were destined to run into trouble with Lutherans and Calvin's followers.That's what happened in Zurich. Zwingli's reforming zeal produced an intolerance of his disciples Grebel and Manz who simply wanted to take the reforms further. They tried to convince Zwingli to follow thru into a genuine NT pattern, but all they did was provoke him to urge the City Council to fine, imprisoned, and eventually martyr them and their followers.The rise of Anabaptism ought to have been no surprise. Revolutions nearly always spin off a radical fringe that feels its destiny is to reform the reformation. Really, that's what Anabaptism was; a voice calling moderate reformers to take it further; to go all the way into a genuine NT model.Like most such movements, the Anabaptists lacked cohesion. By lifting up the Bible as their sole authority, they resisted framing a cogent set of doctrinal distinctives. That meant the movement fragmented into several theological streams with no single body of doctrine and no unifying organization prevailing among them. Even the name “Anabaptist” was pinned on them by their enemies and was meant to class them as radicals at best and at worst, dangerous heretics. The campaign to slander them worked well.In reality, the Radical Reformers rejected the idea of “rebaptism” they were accused of because they never considered the ceremonial sprinkling of infants as valid. They preferred to be called simply “Baptists.” But the fundamental issue wasn't baptism. It was the nature of the Church and its relation to civil government.The Radical Reformers came to their convictions as other Protestants had; by reading the Bible. Luther taught that common people had a right to read, understand and apply the Scriptures for themselves, they didn't need some specially-trained church hierarchy to do all that for them. So, little groups of Anabaptists gathered around their Bibles.Picture a home Bible study. They discover in the pages of Scripture a very different world from the one the official church had concocted in their day. There was no state-church alliance in the Bible, no so-called “Christendom.” Rather, the Church was comprised of local, autonomous communities of believers drawn together by their faith in Jesus and nurtured by local pastors. And while that seems like a massive “Duh!” to many non-denominational Evangelicals today, it was a revolutionary idea in the 16th C.You see, though Luther stressed a personal faith for each believer, Lutheran churches were understood as linked together to form THE Church of Germany. Clergy were ordained by a spiritual hierarchy and the entire population of a region were de-facto members of that region's church. The Church looked to the State for salary and support. In those years, Protestantism differed little from Catholicism in terms of its relationship to the civil authority. If the State was society's arm with the strength to enforce, the Church was its heart and mind with the insight to inspire and inform.Or, think of it this way, for 16th C Catholicism, Lutheranism and Calvinism, in society, the State was the body, the Church was the soul. They saw the Radical Reformers insistence that the Church and State were separate as creating a headless monster destined to do great harm.The Radical Reformers, as we'd suspect, responded with Scripture. Hadn't Jesus said His kingdom was not of this world? Hadn't he told Peter to put away his sword? And besides, hadn't history amply proven that secular, civil power corrupts the Church? All true, but it seems reason and evidence didn't endear the Radical Reformers to their opponents.The Anabaptists wanted to reinstall “apostolic Christianity” by which they meant, the Faith as practiced in the NT, where the only members of the Church were those who were genuinely born again, not everyone who happened to be born in a province with a Christian prince.The True Church, they insisted, is always and only a community of dedicated disciples seeking to live faithfully in the midst of a wicked world.So that little group that gathered in Manz's home in January 1525 knew what they were doing was a violation of Zurich's city council. Persecution was sure to follow. Shortly after the baptism they withdrew from Zurich to the nearby village of Zollikon. There, late in January, the first Anabaptist congregation, the first free church in modern times, was born.The authorities in Zurich couldn't overlook what they deemed blatant rebellion. They sent police to Zollikon and arrested the newly baptized and imprisoned them for a time. But as soon as they were released the Anabaptists went to neighboring towns where they made more converts.Time and warnings passed and the Zurich council ran out of patience. A little over a year later they declared anyone found re-baptizing would be put to death by drowning. “If the heretics want water, they can have it.” Another year went by when the council followed thru on their threat and in Jan, 1527, Felix Manz was the 1st Anabaptist martyr. The authorities drowned him in the Limmat. Just 4 yrs later, the Anabaptists in and around Zurich were virtually wiped out.Many fled to Germany and Austria where their prospects weren't any better. In 1529, the Imperial Diet of Speyer declared Anabaptism a heresy and every region of Christendom was obliged to condemn them to death. Between 4 and 5 thousand were executed over the next several years.The Anabaptists had a simple demand: That a person have a right to his/her own beliefs. What we may not realize is that while that seems an imminently reasonable and assumed axiom for us—it was an idea bequeathed TO US by them! It's not at all what MOST people thought in the 16th C. No way! No how! The Radical Reformers seemed to Moderate Reformers like Luther and Zwingli to be destroying the very fabric of society. There was simply little conception of a society that wasn't shaped by the Church's influence on the State with the State's enforcement of Church policy.We hear the Anabaptist voice in a letter written by a young mother, to her daughter only a few days old. è It's 1573, and the father has already been executed. The mother, in jail, was reprieved long enough to give birth to her child. She writes to urge her daughter not to grow up ashamed of her parents: “My dearest child, the true love of God strengthen you in virtue, you who are yet so young, and whom I must leave in this wicked, evil, perverse world. à Oh, that it had pleased the Lord that I might have brought you up, but it seems that it is not the Lord's will.… Be not ashamed of us; it is the way which the prophets and the apostles went. Your dear father demonstrated with his blood that it is the genuine faith, and I also hope to attest the same with my blood, though flesh and blood must remain on the posts and on the stake, well knowing that we shall meet hereafter.”Persecution forced the Anabaptists north. Many of them found refuge on the lands of a tolerant prince in Moravia. There they founded a Christian commune called the Bruderhof which lasted for many years.A tragic event happened among the Anabaptists in the mid-1530's that's another frequent historical trait. The very thing the Lutherans feared, happened.In 1532, the Reformation spread rapidly throughout the city of Munster. A conservative Lutheran group was the first form of the Reformation to take root there. Then immigrants arrived who were Anabaptist apostles of a shadowy figure named Jan Matthis. What we know about him was written by his critics so he's cast as a fanatic who whipped the Munster officials into a fury of excitement that God was going to set up his kingdom on earth with Munster as the capital.The bishop of the region massed his troops to besiege the city and the Anabaptists uncharacteristically defended themselves. During the siege, the more extreme leaders gained control of the city. Then in the Summer of 1534 Jan of Leiden, seized control and declared himself sole ruler. He claimed to receive revelations from God for the city's victory. He instituted the OT practice of polygamy and took the title “King David.”With his harem “King David” lived in splendor, but was able to maintain morale in the city in spite of massive hunger due to the siege. He kept the bishop's army at bay until the end of June, 1535. The fall of the city brought an end to his and the Anabaptist's rule. But for centuries after, many Europeans equated the word “Anabaptist” with the debacle of the Munster Rebellion. It stood for wild-eyed, religious fanaticism.Munster was to the Anabaptists what the televangelist scandals of the 80's were to Evangelicalism; a serious black eye, that in no way reflected their real beliefs. In the aftermath of Munster, the dispirited Anabaptists of Western Germany were encouraged by the work of Menno Simons. A former priest, Menno visited the scattered Anabaptist groups of northern Europe, inspiring them with his preaching. He was unswerving in commanding pacifism. His name in time came to stand for the Mennonite repudiation of violence.As we end this episode, I want to recommend if anyone wants a much fuller treatment of the Munster Rebellion, let me suggest you visit the Hardcore History podcast titled Prophets of Doom. This podcast by Dan Carlin is an in-depth 4½ hr long investigation of this chapter of Munster's story.